Trimming The Edges
by gangsterdorothy
Summary: Outtakes and other assortments related to Burning The Edges
1. EPOV Outtake: There She Sits

A/N: So I had a different EPOV outtake planned to give to you lovely people, but Edward was telling me to share this part of the story with you. I'm not sure when he'll speak to me again, but I hope you enjoy this little look inside his head.

Text messages are in bold.

Thanks to Bublichka for the quick, helpful beta work.

So without further ado, EPOV of Chapter 6, Origami Lotus.

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She was smirking at me. Her head was turned in my direction, eyes scanning beyond her little area behind the cafeteria. Tiny dimples appeared at the corners of her mouth.

Okay, she wasn't sending me a smile. I knew that already.

In Chemistry, she had started putting together an intricate piece of origami. Her fingers folded the malleable paper, as Mr. Banner gave us clues for our next test. A shape was slowly taking form with the green and blue flyers she used. The bell had rung before she could finish. I would have to wait to find out what it was she was putting together.

It was obviously a personal vow of hers to complete it at lunch. I wanted to be close enough to hear the crinkling. Ask her why she decided to make art out of her paper today.

But, I was standing nowhere near her to utter those words. Today, I watched from across the school yard, standing next to other students who snuck refuge under the canopy of the small walkway.

There were times when I'd stand against the brick wall of the cafeteria and peek around the corner. I never stood behind the trees that were planted in front of her. I've tried my hand at bravery, sat down at a table in the court yard a few feet away and unabashedly look at her a couple of times.

I loved to look at her.

She hid away though, that was easy to see. The way she carried herself was painful. It made my heart ache. During class, her hair would fall like a curtain over the side of her face, shielding the pink cheeks that were the highlight of my day. My hands twitched to reach next to her in class to tuck the strands behind her ear. I had a feeling she would reject my show of affection. It's not like she'd ever spoken to me.

I knew that she would never talk to me if I went up to her. The few times we were obligated to talk to one another, it was clear where she stood on who I was.

Her little nickname for me scrawled on her notes was also a dead give away.

Trust Fund Fucker.

She saw me as a spoiled rich boy who lived in a gigantic mansion. Truth be told, I didn't care too much about any of the riches Carlisle, Esme or anyone in that so called family gave to me. Having every single state-of-the-art gadget was an attractive concept in the beginning. Things that people desired and saved many years for were handed to me on a daily basis.

I never loathed a single entity so much.

The fact that Bella obviously didn't care about money made admiring her that much easier. She literally burned it away. Her backpack was filled with items like sheets of paper and even photographs. I knew she had other objects at home that she spent her time building up and burning down. On the occasion that the town of Forks would throw an event, I would witness her wandering off in search of a place to burn. I think everyone knew that.

And the sad thing is, I don't think she knew the extent of how _much_ people knew. I did hate the fact that she shielded herself, but I wanted to protect that all the same. She definitely didn't need to know beyond what she was aware of. If I was a malicious person, I'd reveal many misgivings about certain people. But alas, I would be stooping to their level.

I caught Bella finishing up her origami creation right there. The blue sheets created a flower of some sort, while the green were the base in the shape of leaves. I wanted to know why that particular flower. Searching for the camera option on my phone, I zoomed in on it and snapped a photo. Pulling out my big lenses and real camera would take too much time. Also, that would be entering the stalker zone.

The internet on my cell would be my way to find out. It would be impersonal and false. If I couldn't be near her without disdain coating her actions toward me, I could stay far back and take in the things she did.

The browser loaded as I entered "origami flowers" into the search engine. As I was about to get an answer, I received a text message on my phone.

**edward, i c u standing there**_. _Alice. I sighed.

I looked around for her. She had been on my case lately with my Bella gazing. Once she found out that a girl had finally caught my eye, she was on that quickly. She made a whole list of ways for me to approach her. Flowers, compliment her, tell her a funny joke…every single cliché that could impress. You can't impress the unimpressionable.

I thought I was making head way at the appreciation dinner. I tried the compliment thing with her dress, because it was such a shock to see her in one. The teal color on her skin, the scoop of the neckline exposing more than I'd ever seen on her. Her big brown eyes. Her slightly flushed cheeks. I could barely breathe, let alone speak comprehensible sentences. I didn't know how to act around her when she stood there. She didn't have her fire to make her comfortable and nothing was going to work. I knew that.

She actually talked to me later that night though. Willingly without my provoking. I was so elated to get somewhere with her, even if it was on the subject of someone I care not to name. Then of course, family had to interrupt.

I searched for Alice in the immediate area. She was small, but I could spot her if I had to. **Where are you?** I typed. I never understood text speak.

**Im not telling. **

**Alice, please quit bothering me. I told you I am not approaching her.**

**is that ur final answer?**

**Yes it is.**

**k.**

I waited for her to show herself. All was clear. I breathed a sigh of relief.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw tiny Alice with her clicking heels barreling down the walkway by the cafeteria building. In the direction of where Bella would be.

"Damn it.", I sprinted across the court yard to step in front of a determined looking Alice.

"Hey, I told you." Alice's hands went to her hips.

"I know. Just give me one more week." Alice was going to do my dirty work for me and it was embarrassing.

"Edward, she is a girl. Shit, she is a girl you like. For two years!" Clearly, she thought this was a miracle.

"Shh…" I shushed her.

"I really thought the dinner would do it for you. Not even sitting down and talking to her helped."

"Tanya interrupted."

"You could've told her to leave you alone. That you were talking to a girl. She would've stepped away." Her tiny arms made a sweeping motion.

I was livid. No way did I want Alice to interfere in all this. "I'm not sure even she'll even acknowledge you if you approached her."

"Edward, I will get her to talk."

"You sound like you want to interrogate her."

"No, I'm just a naturally good conversationalist." With that, Alice was speed walking around me. I went to pull her back one last time, but caught air.

All I could do was listen now.

Alice being her bold self said, "Hi Bella. Mind if I join you?"

Bella, of course didn't acknowledge her. I was waiting for the huge train wreck to happen between the two of them. Bella would probably be shocked at Alice's bluntness.

Alice introduced herself. There was more silence. I wished I could peer around the corned in that moment to see her face. Was she taken aback by this new person entering her area?

Then, Alice brought out the charm. "Bella, don't be silly. I'm not diseased."

I really wanted Bella to say something at that point. Tell Alice to go away or surprise me and talk. I wanted to hear her speak.

Alice was always in tune with people. "So Bella, what did you burn today?"

"Umm…an origami lotus?" Bella quietly admitted. I internally cheered that she not only spoke, but told me what she had made herself. I quickly plugged away at my phone for the answer.

Then no Alice talk was complete without her favorite subject. "Oh, I love origami. Actually, I love all kinds of art. Mostly things related to fashion. Do you like fashion, Bella?"

Bella would be silent the rest of the conversation, so I continued my search; half listening to any development beyond Alice's clothing rant.

Then, I found the site I was looking for. I read through the myths of what a lotus flower meant. _"Lotus symbolizes Life ever renewed and revitalized when it peeks out of the muddy waters every morning…_ _Modern life is an eternal quest to know what an individual really wants and emerging successfully from the war waged with one's own self."_

My heart burst, flew and soared at meaning. I couldn't help but smile. I wanted to believe that Bella knew what picking that particular flower meant. Change was around the corner. That a lotus was what she was and was going to be.

"A little adjustment and it's still you." Alice called me back from my quiet joyful revere. Her hands clapped together.

A silence fell and I hoped Bella wasn't upset by Alice's crazy approach.

"I've gotta run. See you Monday, Bella." Alice skipped around the corner, ever the optimist.

She grabbed my arm, pulling me back to where I had stood earlier in the lunch hour. "Take a look at her."

I saw her. Her jacket exposed her shirt underneath. An accessory was adorned to her jacket. Her long, chestnut hair pushed forward. I couldn't help but stare at how doing so little can change so much.

Bella bit her lip. She looked to be fighting back a smile. _Please, Bella. Smile. I want to see it._

Then, someone heard my wish, as a genuine smile graced her lips. Tears coated her eyes. Her hands twirled the ends of her hair. The flower on her jacket was lucky to have her fingers play with their petals.

"Thank you." I whispered to Alice, my own eyes wetting.

Alice patted my shoulder.

The bell rang soon after that.

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A/N: Hope you enjoyed the small amount of time in Edward's head.


	2. Chapter 24 EB Phone Outtake

A/N: This was kind of an original beginning of Chapter 24 that I unfortunately had to ditch, but I wanted to share it with all of you. Just a little peek at Bella and Edward on the phone.

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"I'm thinking about buying a fire proof box." I confessed to Edward on my new phone, while taking my lunch break at work. It wasn't a fancy schmancy purchase. Safeway sold those pre-paid dealies on a rack by the customer service counter.

Working at Safeway while downright boring, allowed me to save up money. There was something about keeping your earnings and allowing it to grow; it made me feel like an adult. _Oh little Bella is growing up…nope not likely._

I still set some cash aside for other activities too. My fire fun wasn't going to supply itself. That was the whole point of the job in the first place. My three days a week of work while small, was enough to garner me some new supplies I'd had my eye on for some time.

"How much does it cost?" I heard him shuffle something in the background.

Placing the cup of noodles in the microwave, I set the time for them to cook. "I'm not sure. Two, three weeks of pay checks, maybe?" I had researched it a long while ago on the school computer, but I couldn't remember the exact price.

"Hmm…" He contemplated. "That's pretty steep…" he trailed off, pondering the hefty price tag.

"I know, but it's conducive to my daily activities." nestling the phone between my cheek and shoulder.

"Conducive?" Clearly he was humored at the random word I used.

"Yes." We both snickered. I imagined him smirking to himself. "Shut up."

His laughter stopped suddenly. "Damn it.", he muttered into the phone.

"What?" My hand went to my pocket as I aimlessly strolled the hallway outside the break room. It all seemed so easy and light to talk to him at work.

"The paper wasn't under the enlarger enough." Edward loved being in his photo room, specifically the little area where he could develop film and pictures. The week before, I went into the dark room and watched him work for hours on perfecting his art. With child-like enthusiasm, he showed me all the things he used in there. For hours, I watched his nimble fingers bring images to life. He was the most relaxed I'd ever seen him as he concentrated on perfecting every detail. Effectively I felt the same way, as my head rested against his arm every once in a while.

I also learned that he didn't like anything less than perfect when it came to photography. He went through several packs of paper in one session alone. "I'm sure its fine."

"Hmm…" His deep 'hmming' in my ear was definitely doing things to me. "You can look at it later. Hold on I'm putting you on speakerphone." Some loud clattering resonated in my ear.

"What're you doing?" My feet slowly carried me back down the hall.

"Washing the chemical trays." I heard Edward turn the creaky faucet on, as the distinct sound of running water came on. The clattering of trays hitting the bottom of the metal sink would normally annoy me, but it was connecting me to him in this glum grey room. "I wish you were here right now." He sighed out, clearly hating the menial task he was attending to.

"Same here." I settled into one of uncomfortable chairs, imagining it was the much more desirable spot; likely somewhere near Edward.

A loud pop came from the microwave. "Oh shit!" The nasty smell of burnt noodles filled the room, as I opened the door.

Instantly Edward inquired, a hint of panic coming through. "What happened?"

"Nothing just…" The cup was no longer in its familiar shape, noodles laid across the round rotating glass plate, and the paper lid was crumbled. _Why is there no water splattered? _I grabbed a stray noodle and it was dry. "…I forgot to put water in the cup."

Clearly, Edward was messing with not just the noodles in my cup, but the one hanging above my shoulder.

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A/N: I know it's short, but I hoped you enjoyed it :). Review if you like.


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